This invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method as well as a program storage medium, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus and method as well as a program storage medium by which data is recorded onto a recording medium of an apparatus connected to a network or, when the capacity of a recordable area of a recording medium becomes too small, data recorded thereon is moved to a recording medium of another apparatus connected to the network.
As a recording medium of video recorders for recording a program, a recording medium onto which a digital signal can be recorded such as a video disk in place of a video tape are available. A video recorder which uses a hard disk or a like recording medium is characterized, when compared with a video tape recorder which uses a video tape, in that it allows recording simultaneously with reproduction and allows immediate reproduction of a desired portion thereof.
Meanwhile, in recent years, networks have been and are being popularized, and it is possible to communicate data between a plurality of apparatus connected to a network.
Since such a video recorder which uses a hard disk as described above has the hard disk built therein, processing similar to processing with a video tape recorder which uses a video tape as a recording medium that, when the video tape is recorded fully with data, the video tape is replaced cannot be performed readily with the video recorder which uses a hard disk. Therefore, the video recorder which uses a hard disk has a subject to be solved in that a user must perform recording taking notice of a remaining capacity of the hard disk (capacity of a recordable area) so that the capacity of the hard disk may not be used up.
Meanwhile, many of apparatus connected to a network include a recording medium. However, it has not been carried out to exchange data between recording media of such apparatus to assure a recordable area of a predetermined apparatus.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an information processing apparatus and method as well as a program storage medium by which data is recorded onto a recording medium of an apparatus connected to a network to effectively utilize the recording medium.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an information processing apparatus and method as well as a program storage medium by which, when the capacity of a recordable area of a recording medium becomes little, data recorded on the recording medium is moved to a recordable area of a recording medium of another apparatus connected to a network so that the original recording medium normally remains in a condition wherein it has a recording area.
In order to attain the objects described above, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus, including searching means for searching, when an instruction to record data is received, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which the information processing apparatus is connected, securing means for securing a recording area for recording the data in the recordable area searched out by the searching means, and recording means for recording the data into the recording area secured by the securing means.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing method, including a searching step of searching, when an instruction to record data is received, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which an information processing apparatus is connected, a securing step of securing a recording area for recording the data in the recordable area searched out by the searching step, and a recording step of recording the data into the recording area secured by the securing step.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program storage medium on which a computer-readable program is stored, the computer-readable program including a searching step of searching, when an instruction to record data is received, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which an information processing apparatus is connected, a securing step of securing a recording area for recording the data in the recordable area searched out by the searching step, and a recording step of recording the data into the recording area secured by the securing step.
In the information processing apparatus, the information processing method and the program stored in the program storage medium, when an instruction to record data is inputted, a recording area for recording the data is secured in a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network, and data is recorded into the thus secured recording area. Consequently, a recording medium connected to the network can be utilized efficiently.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus, including recording means for recording data, discrimination means for discriminating whether or not an amount of data recorded on the recording means is greater than a predetermined amount, searching means for searching, when it is discriminated by the discrimination means that the amount of recorded data is greater than the predetermined amount, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which the information processing apparatus is connected, and moving means for moving the data recorded on the recording means to the recordable area searched out by the searching means.
According to a yet further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing method, including a recording control step of controlling recording of data, a discrimination step of discriminating whether or not an amount of data recorded by the recording control step is greater than a predetermined amount, a searching step of searching, when it is discriminated by the discrimination step the amount of recorded data is greater than the predetermined amount, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which an information processing apparatus is connected, and a moving step of moving the data recorded by the recording step to the recordable area searched out by the searching step.
According to a yet further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program storage medium on which a computer-readable program is stored, the computer-readable program including a recording control step of controlling recording of data, a discrimination step of discriminating whether or not an amount of data recorded by the recording control step is greater than a predetermined amount, a searching step of searching, when it is discriminated by the discrimination step the amount of recorded data is greater than the predetermined amount, for a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network to which an information processing apparatus is connected, and a moving step of moving the data recorded by the recording step to the recordable area searched out by the searching step.
In the information processing apparatus, the information processing method and the program stored in the program storage medium, if it is discriminated that the amount of recorded data is greater than a predetermined amount, then a recordable area of a recording medium provided in another apparatus connected to a network is searched for, and the recorded data is moved into the searched out recordable area. Consequently, desired data can be recorded while the user need not take notice of the recording capacity.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like parts or elements denoted by like reference symbols.